万维提示：

1、投稿方式：在线投稿。

2、期刊网址：

https://www.journals.elsevier.com/value-in-health

3、投稿网址：https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/valueinhealth

4、官网邮箱：viheditor@ispor.org（编辑部）

5、期刊刊期：月刊，一个月出版一期。

2020年11月30日星期一

投稿须知

【官网信息】

Guide for Authors

About Value in Health

As the official journal of ISPOR, Value in Health provides a forum for researchers, healthcare decision makers, and policy makers to translate pharmacoeconomics and outcomes research into healthcare decisions. The goal of Value in Health is to advance scholarly and public dialogue about the assessment of value in health and healthcare.

Increasingly, healthcare decision makers and policy makers are seeking outcomes research information (ie, comparative treatment effectiveness, economic costs and benefits, and patient-reported outcomes) that can guide them in healthcare resource allocation, and in evaluating alternative treatments and health services interventions. Value in Health contains original research articles in the areas of economic evaluation (including drugs and other medical technologies), outcomes research ( real world treatment effectiveness, and patient-reported outcomes research), and conceptual, methodological, and health policy articles. All published articles must be conducted in a rigorous manner and must reflect valid and reliable theory and methods. Empirical analyses and conceptual models must reflect ethical research practices and provide valuable information for healthcare decision making as well as the research community as a whole.

Value in Health welcomes papers that make substantial contributions to the existing literature by providing new evidence or ideas that extend the current knowledge base. As such, manuscripts should describe the unique contribution of the article and place the current paper in context with prior publications. Value in Health does not consider papers reporting data series or data sets that do not include appropriate statistical analyses. The journal uses the peer review process to assure rigorous and transparent use of statistical methods. Value in Health also requires that papers reporting modeling results include sensitivity analysis of key and influential model parameters.

Mission Statement

The mission of Value in Health is to set a high scientific standard using editorial review and peer review, not just to screen articles, but also to foster communication within the research community--facilitating knowledge-sharing between the outcomes research community and healthcare decision makers. As such, the editors of Value in Health aim to enhance the validity, reliability, and transparency of pharmacoeconomics and outcomes research and its real-world applicability.

Editorial Scope

The Journal provides a forum for the advancement and dissemination of knowledge and methods in health and the health-related outcomes of interventions used to treat disease. To that end, the journal encourages original contributions in applied and theoretical health economics, and in the theory, measurement, analysis, and translation of health-related outcomes research. In keeping with its broad mission, Value in Health also will accept methodology papers and systematic reviews of empirical and theoretical literature in pharmacoeconomics and outcomes research.

Authors are invited to submit research articles that are based on coherent models, empirical studies, and theoretical work having pragmatic or policy-relevant implications. Appropriate valuation of healthcare interventions requires multidisciplinary perspectives and assessment of economic and outcomes data. Therefore, the journal welcomes theoretical and empirical articles about health effects and health costs that strive to improve the quality and reliability of outcome evaluations of healthcare interventions--contributed not only by economists, but also from behavioral psychologists, sociologists, clinicians, ethicists, and others.

Value in Health is particularly interested in articles in the following areas:

Economic Evaluations

Economic evaluations that assess the costs and consequences of alternative healthcare interventions are of interest, including those involving drugs, devices, procedures, and systems of organization of healthcare. However, studies that only consider costs, or the economic burden of disease, are less likely to be accepted unless they address important methodological or policy issues.

Patient Reported Outcomes

There remain many challenging empirical and theoretical problems in the concept and measurement of patient reported outcomes (PRO) including health-related quality of life (QoL). Articles presenting research on the development of measures for PRO/QoL instruments, especially innovative ways of assessing content or construct validity are invited. (See also Country Adaptations below.)

Preference-based Assessments

Research on the development and use of various types of instruments to express the value of healthcare, including health utility assessments, discrete choice experiments/conjoint analyses and assessments of individuals willingness-to-pay is encouraged. (See also Country Adaptations below.)

Comparative Effectiveness Research/Health Technology Assessment

Although it is difficult to be precise about the nature of the articles in this category (see Luce et al, The Milbank Quarterly 2010;88: 256-276 for one taxonomy), Value in Health welcomes articles presenting information that can assist those deciding on the efficient and equitable allocation of healthcare resources by examining the relative value of interventions. In some cases relative value may be addressed by considering only clinical outcomes, although normally it will involve considering patient-reported outcomes/quality-of-life measures, and impacts on resource utilization. Articles in this category can report the results of primary research, or present findings from metaanalyses or systematic reviews of the existing literature.

Health Policy Analyses

The journal invites articles that discuss various aspects of health policy, in particular those concerned with pricing and reimbursement issues, the adoption of new health technologies, or policies to encourage value-based decision-making. However, the journal s scope does not include papers dealing with more general issues of healthcare financing, health insurance and cost-containment measures.

Country Adaptations

Value in Health recognizes that it is sometimes instructive to publish the results of pharmacoeconomics and outcomes research studies relating to more than one country. In the case of economic evaluations, this might involve using a model that was previously developed for an evaluation of a given intervention in another country. In the case of outcomes research, this might involve the validation of a quality of life instrument in another language or different jurisdiction. The journal is willing to consider such papers for publication, but only if they make a substantial independent contribution to the literature. Those submitting country adaptations should indicate (in the paper and their covering letter) what they consider the substantial independent contribution to be. It will not be sufficient to state that results for intervention X have not previously been reported for country Y .For more information about Country Adaptations , click here.

Following Good Practices for Outcomes Research

Value in Health publishes the reports on Good Practices for Outcomes Research developed by Task Forces appointed by the ISPOR Board of Directors. There are now more than 65 Task Force Reports, which can be accessed via the following link (http://www.ispor.org/workpaper/practices_index.asp). These Task Force reports provide guidance for best practices across a variety of research areas, including methods related to articles relevant to the scope of Value in Health. These include comparative effectiveness research, economic evaluation, observational studies, patient-reported outcomes, modelling, preference-based methods and the use of outcomes research in decision-making.

Although Value in Health does not prescribe any particular research methods, the Editors strongly encourage authors to review the ISPOR Good Practices for Outcomes Research reports relating to the methods or topics covered by their paper. The reports are written by thought leaders in the various fields of research and are extensively peer-reviewed by members of the Society.

Some of the Task Force reports address the reporting of research studies. Irrespective of the methods used in a particular study, Value in Health feels that adherence to accepted standards of reporting is important. Therefore, if your paper reports an economic evaluation, we recommend that you follow the CHEERS guidelines. If your analysis is based on a model, we recommend that you follow the guidance in the ISPOR-SMDM Task Force report on model transparency and validation. Other reporting standards of particular relevance of authors of papers in Value in Health are the PRISMA guidelines for the reporting of systematic reviews and the CONSORT guidelines for reporting the results of studies assessing health-related quality of life/patient-reported outcomes.

Article Categories

Value in Health considers articles in the following categories, which make up the sections of the journal. However, in an effort to standardize article categories across their platform of journals, Elsevier uses a different nomenclature for article types in their online submission system. Listed below are the article categories for Value in Health, followed in parenthesis by the equivalent name used in the online submission system. When submitting a manuscript through our online system, authors should indicate the appropriate category under which they wish their paper to be considered. All submissions will be considered for peer review prior to publication, with the exception of Editorials and Letters to the Editor, which will be reviewed internally by the Editors.

Original Research (research paper)

These papers report the findings of original research and may contain the results of empirical analysis, instrument development, or policy analysis. Word count (excluding references) should not exceed 4000 words and contain no more than 6 graphic elements (ie, combined total of tables and figures).

Methodological Articles (methodological article)

As the name implies, these papers deal with methodological issues in any of the topic areas within the scope of the journal. They can include data if these are required to illustrate the importance of particular methodological points. Methodological articles can be up to 3500 words, excluding references, and may have up to 6 figures or tables.

Policy Perspectives (opinion paper)

These papers discuss important health policy topics within the scope of the journal. They may reflect conceptual pieces or reviews of the literature. Word count (excluding references) should not exceed 3000 words and contain no more than 4 graphic elements (ie, combined total of tables and figures).

Systematic Reviews (review article)

These are papers containing reviews of empirical studies consistent with the methods of systematic review proposed by the Cochrane Collaboration. However, they need not be confined to reviews of randomized controlled trials and can include reviews of observational studies, economic evaluations, outcomes research studies, and preference-based assessments. Word count (excluding references) should not exceed 4000 words and contain no more than 6 graphic elements (ie, combined total of tables and figures).

Brief Reports (short communication)

These are empirical analyses with a more narrow focus than original research articles and generally a single aim. Word count (excluding references) should not exceed 2500 words and contain no more than 2 graphic elements (ie, combined total of tables and figures).

Commentaries (commentary)

These are brief (typically less than 2000 words with 1 table or figure) papers that present a particular perspective on a timely or controversial topic. They do not necessarily need to be based on original research or reviews of the literature and can be based on opinion, providing the points made are transparent and well-argued. While Commentaries are typically invited contributions, the Editors will consider unsolicited submissions.

Editorials (editorial)

Editorials are commissioned by the editorial team and often accompany a paper published in the same issue of the journal. Word count should not exceed 1000 words, but exceptions can be made with agreement from the editors.

Letters to the Editor (correspondence)

Customarily, letters refer to content published in the journal within the past 6 months. Authors of the article to which the letter refers will be given the opportunity to reply, and if a response is issued, both the letter and the reply will be published in the same issue of the journal.

Details of the Submission and Publication Process

I. Manuscript Submission and Specifications

Value in Health uses a web-based submission system. To submit a manuscript, please create an account and log on here: https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/valueinhealth. For assistance, authors may contact the Value in Health editorial office at: viheditor@ispor.org.

If submissions are larger than 500 KB, they should be compressed using PKZIP or WINZIP.

Each submission should contain separate documents as follows:

Cover Letter

The cover letter should include: 1) title of the manuscript; 2) name of the document file(s) containing the manuscript and the software (and version) used; 3) name and all contact information for the corresponding author and a statement as to whether the data, models, or methodology used in the research are proprietary; 4) names of all sponsors of the research and a statement of all direct or indirect financial relationships the authors have with the sponsors; and 5) if applicable, a statement that the publication of study results was not contingent on the sponsor s approval or censorship of the manuscript.

Title Page

The title page should contain the following: 1) title; 2) full names (first and surname) of all authors including academic degrees and affiliation(s); 3) name, mailing and email addresses, telephone and fax numbers of corresponding author (with whom all correspondence will take place unless other arrangements are made); 4) all sources of financial or other support for the manuscript (if no funding was received, this should be noted on the title page); 5) at least four key words for indexing purposes; 6) a running title of not more than 45 characters including spaces; and 7) acknowledgements (if applicable).

Manuscripts

Manuscripts must be written in English, typed in Microsoft Word (2003 or later; .doc or .docx file formats). Manuscripts should be in 8.5x11-inch page format, double-spaced with 1-inch margins on all sides and size 10 font (Arial or Times New Roman fonts are preferred). Minimal formatting should be used (ie, no line numbers, no watermarks, no justification, italics, bold, indenting, etc). There should be no hard returns at the end of lines. Double-spacing after each element is requested (eg, headings, titles, paragraphs, legends). The Recommendations for the Conduct, Reporting, Editing and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals (ICMJE Recommendations) should be consulted for specific style issues not addressed here.

Highlights

Value in Health publishes papers that add to the literature in a substantive way to inform health care decision making. Therefore, during the submission process, authors are asked to identify several Highlights that illustrate the paper s contribution to the field. Highlights should not summarize the article, but rather should highlight the novel insights related to value in health care delivery that the paper provides.

What is already known about the topic?

What does the paper add to existing knowledge?

What insights does the paper provide for informing health care-related decision making? (optional)

Abstract

An abstract of 250 words or less is required that summarizes the work reported in the manuscript. Original research manuscripts should use a structured format for the abstract (eg, Objectives, Methods, Results, and Conclusions).

Text

The body of the manuscript should be divided into sections that facilitate reading and comprehension of the material. This should normally include sections with the major headings: Introduction, Methods, Results, Conclusions, and References. Acknowledgments (if applicable) should be included in the title page and not in the body of the manuscript. There should be no footnotes. Figures (inclusive of figure legends) and tables must be submitted as separate files, independent of the main manuscript file. Section headers (first, second, third, etc.) should also be included.

References

References should be listed in a separate section and numbered consecutively with Arabic numerals in the order in which they are cited in the text. Referencing software, superscripts, or any other electronic format should not be used when referencing, neither in the text nor the reference list. Citing unpublished or non-peer-reviewed work such as abstracts and presented papers is discouraged. Personal communications may be indicated in the text as long as written acknowledgment from the authors of the communications accompanies the manuscript. Reference style should follow the AMA Manual of Style: A Guide for Authors and Editors (10th ed). Boston: Oxford University Press, 2007. If there are six or more authors, use only the names of the first three, followed by et al. The four most common types of references are illustrated below for example.

Journal article: Surname and initials of author(s), title of article, name of journal, year, volume number, first and last page.

Vassall A, Mangham-Jefferies L, Gomez GB, Pitt C, Foster N. Incorporating demand and supply constraints into economic evaluations in low-income and middle-income countries. Health Econ 2016;25(Suppl 1):95-115.

Book: Surname and initials of author(s)/editor(s), title and subtitle, volume, edition (other than first), city, publisher, year.

Drummond MF, Sculpher MJ, Claxton K, Stoddart GL, Torrance GW. Methods for the Economic Evaluation of Health Care Programmes (4th ed). New York: Oxford University Press, 2015.

Chapter in Book: Surname and initials of author(s), title of chapter, author(s)/editor(s) of book, title of book, volume, edition (other than first), city, publisher, year.

Schulman KA, Glick HA, Polsky D. Pharmacoeconomics: Economic Evaluation of Pharmaceuticals. In: Strom BL and Kimmel SE eds, Textbook of Pharmacoepidemiology, West Sussex, England: John Wiley and Sons, Ltd, published online May 2013.

Website: WWW Document. Available from: http://www. . . [Accessed Month Day, year].

ISPOR. ISPOR Good Practices for Outcomes Research Index. Available from: http://www.ispor.org/workpaper/practices_index.asp. [Accessed January 1, 2016].

Tables

Tables should be clearly labeled, neatly typed, and easy to understand without reference to the text. Each should be double-spaced and presented on a separate page. Statistical estimates should indicate parameter estimates and, as appropriate, t ratios or standard error, statistical significance, sample size, and other relevant information. All abbreviations must be explained below each table. Each table should be numbered and have a self-explanatory title.

Figures

Figures should each be submitted as a separate image file; not embedded in the manuscript document or in a slide presentation. Cite figures consecutively as they appear in the text using Arabic numbers (eg, Figure 1, Figure 2, Figure 3A, etc.). Each figure must be assigned a brief title (as few words as possible, and reserving abbreviations for the legend) as well as a legend. The corresponding legend should be typed double-spaced on a separate page. All symbols, arrows, and abbreviations must be explained in the legend. If authors provide usable color figures with their accepted article, the journal will ensure (at no additional charge) that these figures will appear in color on the Web (eg, ScienceDirect and other sites) regardless of whether or not these illustrations are reproduced in color in the printed version. However, there is a charge for color reproduction in the print version of the journal. Authors will receive information regarding the costs from Elsevier after receipt of your accepted article. Please indicate your preference for color in print or on the Web only. Please submit image files with a resolution of at least 300 DPI. Line artwork should contain a resolution of least 1000 DPI. Elsevier recommends submitting figures in the following formats: TIFF, JPG, EPS, and PDF. Please be sure to delete any identifying patient information such as name, social security number, etc. Photographs in which a person s face is recognizable must be accompanied by a letter of release from that person explicitly granting permission for publication in the journal. For any previously published material, written permission for both print and electronic reprint rights must be obtained from the copyright holder. For further explanation and examples of artwork preparation, see Elsevier s Author Artwork Instructions at www.elsevier.com/artwork.

Supplementary Material or Supplementary Data

Authors may submit appendices that describe either methods or results in more detail if these are needed for clarity of understanding by either peer reviewers or readers. If appropriate, materials suitable for Web publication but not print publication (eg, audio or video files, see below) can also be submitted. If you do so, indicate the particular reasons for the appendix and whether you are submitting it for possible Web publication or simply for peer review purposes. Value in Health accepts audio and video files as ancillaries to the main article. Audio files should be in .mp3 format; the recommended upper limit for the size of a single file is 10 Mb. Video files should be submitted in .mpg or .mp4 format, the recommended upper limit for the size of a single file is 10Mb. Any alternative format supplied may be subject to conversion (if technically possible) prior to online publication.

Survey Instrument

For papers analyzing preferences, Value in Health requires the submission of a copy of the survey instrument (translated into English in case of different original language) used to generate the preference data. This is to help facilitate the review process and the survey instrument need not appear in a final publication. If the authors wish the questionnaire to be published with the paper, it should be submitted through the journal s online submission system as part of the paper. If the questionnaire is not intended to be published with the paper, it should be uploaded as Supporting Information so that reviewers can view it as a supplemental appendix.

II. Data, Models, and Methodology

All authors must agree to make their data available at the Editor s request for examination and re-analysis by referees or other persons designated by the Editor. All models and methodologies must be presented in sufficient detail to be fully comprehensible to readers.

III. Author Anonymity

It is the policy of Value in Health that peer review of submitted manuscripts is double blinded (ie, the reviewers do not know the names of the authors of manuscripts and the authors do not know the names of the reviewers). As such, the journal requires that all identifying information (author names, acknowledgements, etc) be removed from the manuscript file and strictly limited to the unblinded title page and cover letter (which are not accessible to peer reviewers).

IV. Ethics in Publishing

For information on Ethics in Publishing and Ethical guidelines for journal publication see https://www.elsevier.com/publishingethics and https://www.elsevier.com/ethicalguidelines.

V. Conflict of Interest and Copyright Assignment Forms

All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence (bias) their work. As part of the online submission process, all authors are required to complete and submit the ICJME Form for Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest. Examples of potential conflicts of interest include employment, consultancies, stock ownership, honoraria, paid expert testimony, patent applications/registrations, and grants or other funding. See also https://www.elsevier.com/conflictsofinterest.

Authors are also required to assign copyright of their papers. Copyright assignment is a condition of publication and papers will not be passed to the publisher for production unless copyright has been assigned. The journal s copyright assignment form can be found online at Copyright Assignment Form. A faxed copy of this completed and signed form is acceptable; fax to (609) 586-4982 or email to: viheditor@ispor.org.

If excerpts from other copyrighted works are included, the author(s) must obtain written permission from the copyright owners and credit the source(s) in the article. Elsevier has preprinted forms for use by authors in these cases: please consult https://www.elsevier.com/permissions.

VI. Submission Declaration

Submission of an article implies that the work described has not been published previously (except in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture or academic thesis), that it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere, that its publication is approved by all authors and tacitly or explicitly by the responsible authorities where the work was carried out, and that, if accepted, it will not be published elsewhere (either in whole or in part, in print or electronic form, in English or in any other language, etc) without the written consent of the copyright-holder.

VII. Retained Author Rights

As an author you (or your employer or institution) retain certain rights; for details you are referred to: https://www.elsevier.com/authorsrights.

VII. Funding Body Agreements and Policies

Elsevier has established agreements and developed policies to allow authors whose articles appear in journals published by Elsevier, to comply with potential manuscript archiving requirements as specified as conditions of their grant awards. To learn more about existing agreements and policies please visit https://www.elsevier.com/fundingbodies.

IX. The Review Process

The journal has witnessed more than a 50% increase in submissions over the past 5 years. As a result, we now find it necessary to reject many more papers without peer review, including ones that may be suitable for publication in other leading journals. Although we recognize that authors never want to hear that their papers are rejected, we also know that they value a fast response time. That said, the Editors strive to return decisions on papers that not sent out for peer review within 2 weeks.

On the other hand, all manuscripts that are deemed appropriate for Value in Health after initial screening will be reviewed by at least two peer reviewers. The objective of the journal is to complete peer review and reach editorial decision within 6-8 weeks of submission, at which time the corresponding author will receive written notification, including anonymous feedback from the reviewers.

Value in Health expects the highest ethical standards from their authors, reviewers, and editors when conducting research, submitting papers, and throughout the entire peer-review process. Value in Health subscribes to the Committee on Publishing Ethics (COPE) and supports COPE Ethical Guidelines for Peer Reviewers.

X. Author Tracking Services

Authors may track accepted articles at https://www.elsevier.com/trackarticle and set up e-mail alerts to inform them when an article s status has changed. Contact details for questions arising after acceptance of an article, especially those relating to proofs, will be provided by the publisher.

XI. Proofs

Proofs will be sent electronically to the Authors to be carefully checked for printer s errors. Substantive changes or additions to the edited manuscript cannot be allowed at this stage. Corrected proofs should be returned to the publisher within 48 hours.

XII. Offprints

The corresponding author, at no cost, will be provided with a PDF file of the article via e-mail. For an extra charge, paper offprints can be ordered via the offprint order form which is sent once the article is accepted for publication. The PDF file is a watermarked version of the published article and includes a cover sheet with the journal cover image and a disclaimer outlining the terms and conditions of use.

Country adaptations

In the case of economic modeling studies, a substantial independent contribution would involve going beyond merely substituting data on the key parameters for the second country. It would also include an analysis of the suitability of the model structure for use in the second country, a discussion of which model parameters differ greatly for the second country and whether the policy context were sufficiently different to require a different interpretation of the results (e.g. different cost-effectiveness threshold or thresholds, different perspectives on costs or different incentive structures for the adoption of the new intervention). In addition, if would be useful to discuss what, if anything, can be learned from the model adaptation that could inform its use in other jurisdictions.

In the case of validations of quality of life instruments in a different jurisdiction, a substantial, novel and independent contribution would involve going beyond merely translating and back-translating the instrument. It would also involve a discussion of cultural differences between the countries that could affect the use or interpretation of the instrument and whether judgments about the relative weights to be assigned to changes in different domains, or the assessment of a quantitatively important change, are likely to differ across settings. As in the case of the economic modelling studies, it would also be useful to discuss what, if anything, can be learned from the given country adaptation that could inform adaptations to other jurisdictions.

In order to assist the editorial process, it would be helpful if authors highlighted the nature of the substantial contribution when making a submission containing a country adaptation.